Assam Jatiya Parishad to push for Laika-Dodhia villagers’ rehab; stage stir on January 21
GUWAHATI:
Members of the newly floated regional political party, Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) has decided to undertake a state-wide protest on January 21, demanding a permanent settlement of over 1,400 ‘homeless’ families of Laika and Dodhia villages under Dibru Saikhowa National Park in Upper Assam.
It may be mentioned that several hundreds of protesters of the two villages are camping at Lezaihola Borguri in Tinsukia town for the past one month now in “adverse” conditions.
Worse still, three protesters, including a pregnant woman, have died after falling ill at the protest camp over the past four weeks.
“We will stage a state-wide protest on January 21 demanding immediate relocation and rehabilitation of over 1,400 families of Laika and Dodhia villages. All our members in the districts, constituencies and regional units have been asked to stage a three-hour sit-in demonstration from 11 am on January 21,” AJP General secretary Jagadish Bhuyan informed on Tuesday.
ALSO READ:
Also Read: Assam: Tribal students’ group move Union Minister over Laika-Dodhia stir
It may be recalled that the earthquake in 1950 had compelled the families to shift base from Murkongselek in Dhemaji to the forest area in Dibru Saikhowa National Park.
“The families belong to the indigenous community (Mising) but have been living in a state of uncertainty for so long. The government has not made any alternative arrangements for their shelter and livelihoods ever since the villages where they were living were declared protected areas,” Bhuyan said.
The Assam government had on December 30, 2020, constituted a ten-member committee to find out ways for relocation and rehabilitation of the residents by the end of this month.
The AJP also demanded implementation of the Brahma Committee’s recommendations to safeguard lands of indigenous people in the state besides demanding land patta or the landless people of Assam.
(Edited by Ladiangti Rani)
ALSO WATCH:
